Chicago is Locale for Panera’s Debut “Panera to Go” Concept Restaurant

Fast casual restaurant powerhouse Panera Bread has opened its first “Panera To Go” in Chicago, a new-concept Panera Bread restaurant format offering “digitally-enabled convenience for Rapid Pick-Up and Delivery orders,” the company said in a statement. The store is located at 5320 N. Broadway on Chicago’s North Side. 

Panera To Go test locations are scheduled to open this year in California and Washington, DC, the statement said. Panera To Go is a digital-only bakery-cafe, with a reduced front of house where guests and delivery drivers can easily pick up orders from “Rapid Pick-Up and Delivery shelves.” There is little, if any, seating in the new Panera concept store. 

Designed for densely populated areas that cannot accommodate a dine-in bakery-cafe, the new format allows Panera to meet the demand in these areas for easy off-premises options.